AI Use Policy for Authors, Reviewers and Editors

AI Use Policy for Authors, Reviewers and Editors of TJEB

1. General Principles

TJEB recognises that artificial intelligence (AI), generative AI, large language models (LLMs), and other AI-assisted tools may support some aspects of research and manuscript preparation. However, AI tools must be used responsibly, ethically, transparently, and under full human oversight.

Authors, reviewers, and editors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, integrity, originality, confidentiality, and ethical compliance of all work submitted to or handled by TJEB. AI tools must not be used in ways that compromise research integrity, publication ethics, confidentiality, authorship accountability, data protection, intellectual property rights, or the reliability of the scholarly record.

2. Scope of the Policy

This policy applies to any use of AI or AI-assisted tools in relation to manuscripts submitted to TJEB, including use by:

  • authors preparing, revising, or submitting manuscripts;
  • reviewers evaluating manuscripts;
  • editors and Editorial Office members handling manuscripts;
  • any other person involved in TJEB's editorial or publication process.

For the purposes of this policy, AI-assisted tools may include, but are not limited to, large language models, chatbots, AI writing assistants, translation tools, image generators, coding assistants, data-analysis tools, and other systems capable of generating, revising, analysing, summarising, or transforming content.

3. AI Authorship

AI tools, chatbots, large language models, or other non-human systems must not be listed as authors or co-authors of manuscripts submitted to TJEB. Authorship requires human accountability, approval of the final manuscript, responsibility for the integrity of the work, and the ability to respond to questions about the research. These responsibilities cannot be assigned to AI tools. All listed authors must be human individuals who meet the authorship criteria defined in the Authorship and Contributorship Policy.

4. Use of AI by Authors

Authors may use AI tools to support specific aspects of research and manuscript preparation, provided that such use is responsible, transparent, and subject to human review. Permitted uses may include:

  • improving grammar, spelling, punctuation, readability, or language clarity;
  • assisting with translation, provided the authors verify the accuracy of the translated text;
  • helping organise ideas or improve text structure, provided that the intellectual content remains the authors' own;
  • assisting with coding, data processing, or analysis where such use is properly checked, validated, and described;
  • supporting literature organisation or search strategy development, provided all sources are independently verified by the authors.

Authors must not use AI tools as a substitute for their own intellectual contribution, scientific judgement, analysis, interpretation, or critical reasoning. Authors are fully responsible for checking and verifying all AI-assisted content, including factual statements, references, calculations, interpretations, and conclusions.

5. AI Use Requiring Disclosure

Authors must disclose substantive use of AI or AI-assisted tools in manuscript preparation, research design, data analysis, image or figure preparation, coding, interpretation, translation, or other research-related activities. The disclosure must state, where relevant:

  • the name of the AI tool or service used;
  • the purpose of use;
  • the part of the work affected;
  • the extent of human review and verification.

Basic grammar, spelling, punctuation, and formatting checks do not normally require disclosure. AI use that forms part of the research method, data analysis, modelling, coding, image processing, or other substantive research activity must be described in the Methods section or another appropriate part of the manuscript.

6. Unacceptable Use of AI by Authors

The following uses of AI are not acceptable:

  • listing AI tools as authors or co-authors;
  • submitting AI-generated content without proper human review, verification, and accountability;
  • using AI to fabricate, falsify, or manipulate data, evidence, references, quotations, citations, results, or conclusions;
  • using AI-generated references without verifying that the sources exist and support the cited claims;
  • using AI to create misleading, fabricated, or deceptive images, figures, tables, datasets, or research evidence;
  • using AI in a way that infringes copyright, privacy, confidentiality, or third-party rights;
  • using AI to obscure plagiarism, duplicate publication, authorship misconduct, or other publication ethics breaches.

7. AI-Generated or AI-Assisted Images, Figures, and Data

AI must not be used to create, alter, obscure, remove, move, or introduce features in images, figures, tables, datasets, or research evidence in a way that misrepresents the underlying data or findings.

AI-generated illustrations may be used only for conceptual or explanatory purposes. They must be clearly labelled, must not be presented as research data or evidence, and must be disclosed appropriately.

8. Use of AI by Reviewers

Reviewers must treat manuscripts and review materials as confidential. Reviewers must not upload submitted manuscripts, supplementary files, review reports, author responses, or unpublished manuscript content into public or external AI tools, unless the use has been explicitly authorised by TJEB and confidentiality, privacy, intellectual property rights, and data protection obligations are fully protected.

Reviewers must not rely on AI tools to conduct the scientific evaluation of a manuscript or to generate a review report without explicit permission from the journal. The reviewer remains fully responsible for the accuracy, fairness, originality, confidentiality, and integrity of the review report.

9. Use of AI by Editors and the Editorial Office

Editors and Editorial Office members must protect the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts and editorial communications. They must not upload submitted manuscripts, reviewer reports, author responses, editorial decision letters, or confidential editorial materials into public or external AI tools unless confidentiality, data protection, and author rights are fully protected.

AI tools must not replace editorial judgement, reviewer assessment, or the final decision-making authority of the Editor-in-Chief (EIC).

10. Responsibility and Accountability

Authors, reviewers, and editors are responsible for all AI-assisted work they submit, review, or approve. AI-generated output may be inaccurate, incomplete, biased, fabricated, or based on sources that are not properly attributed. Therefore, all AI-assisted content must be checked carefully by the relevant human user. Use of AI does not reduce or transfer responsibility from authors, reviewers, editors, or the journal.

11. Detection, Clarification, and Editorial Action

TJEB may request clarification about suspected or declared AI use where necessary for editorial assessment. The journal will not rely solely on automated AI-detection tools to make decisions about misconduct. Failure to disclose relevant AI use, or misuse of AI in a way that compromises research integrity or publication ethics, may result in:

  • request for clarification or revision;
  • rejection of the manuscript;
  • correction, expression of concern, retraction, withdrawal, or other appropriate editorial action.

12. Relationship with Other Journal Policies

This policy should be read together with other relevant TJEB documents, including:

  • Guide for Authors
  • Peer Review Policy
  • Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement
  • Authorship and Contributorship Policy
  • Competing Interests / Conflict of Interest Policy
  • Research Ethics / Ethical Oversight Policy
  • Corrections, Retractions, Withdrawals, and Expressions of Concern Policy
  • Data Availability and Reproducibility Policy
  • Reviewer Guidelines

13. Compliance with International Guidance

TJEB applies this policy in accordance with internationally recognised principles of publication ethics, transparency, confidentiality, and accountability, including relevant guidance from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).